


Man's Best Friend

by Gigabite



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Fenrir!Coulson, Friendship, Gen, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Shapeshifting
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-04-06
Updated: 2013-04-10
Packaged: 2017-12-07 15:17:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/749994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gigabite/pseuds/Gigabite
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony once had a dog. A long time ago, it used to go by the name Fenrir.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Written for a prompt on avengerskink: http://avengerkink.livejournal.com/6565.html?thread=11362469  
> Uh, longprompt is long.  
>    
> So, when Tony was a kid/teen, he found a dog wandering around wherever he was staying at the time. Except, the dog was actually Fenrir (as in, Loki’s giant wolf of a kid) on a walkabout, and he happened to inherit his dad’s (mom’s? Loki can have been pregnant with Fenrir himself or not) shapeshifting ability, except he can only be in canine or human(ish – jötunn or ás) form. 
> 
> Anyway, in-between making AI robots and being a smartass minigenius, that dog was Tony’s best friend. But life happens, and eventually, the dog got lost or ran away or get sent away (Obie) and while Tony was heartbroken, it wasn’t like he hadn’t gotten used to losing everything important. 
> 
> Time passes, as it does, and Afghanistan happens. On his way out of the desert, Tony hallucinates a wolf helping – leading him, herding him, keeping him warm, keeping him company, becoming enormous and chasing something away. 
> 
> Totally a hallucination, of course.
> 
> And then that government spook in the ill-fitting suit is flitting around, and he just never leaves. Tony doesn’t want to like him, but he can’t help it. Something about feels right.
> 
> But then Loki kills Coulson, and in the devastation that is Manhattan around Stark Tower, Tony finds a dog. A wolfdog, actually, and it looks so much like that dog he had as a kid, he can’t help himself. 
> 
> How it comes out that the wolfdog is Coulson, and Coulson is Fenrir, Loki’s kid (did Loki know? Was it all part of some long-term, twisty plot that only makes sense to the God of Lies and his kid(s)?) I have no idea. 
> 
> I’d just really like Fenrir to be a dog Tony had once, and that Coulson is also Fenrir. *shrugs* 
> 
> ((Well... sat down and decided to try polish it up and post it here. Try being the key word. Dialogue and descriptions are my biggest weaknesses so let's hope that this is somewhat coherent. Random trivia, this was the first story I ever wrote. :D (The first one I posted here was my second)))

They broke. The chains that bound him fell to the floor of his cave. Ignoring the pain from the sword still pinning his muzzle, Fenrir lifted himself up and forced it off. Blood poured from the wound, but he ignored it, a small twinge in his mind. Compared to what he went through, it was nothing more than a minor irritation.

He was free. Countless millenniums bound and chained for a crime he was foretold to do and now free to do whatever he wanted.

Thoughts of revenge and anger flooded his mind before being pushed down by fear; cold fear of being found and bound again. He would give up any thoughts of hatred if it meant he would be free. He would give up everything if he could be forever rid of the chains.

He lifted a massive paw forward, taking his first steps as if he were a small pup again. His head touched the ceiling and he belatedly realized how much he had grown. It was slow going, relearning how to walk. Walking; he hadn't done that in a long time.

He was out of the cave, chains, sword, and bitter memories behind him. The world in front of him was so bright, so beautiful, and so alive. Time had passed by without him and it had shown. He felt a gentle breeze tickling his fur, the grass beneath his paws and the warmt of sunlight on his face. It had been so long. Fenrir found himself taking a deep breath, and held back the howl that he so desperately wanted to release. His freedom was only temporary here, and letting the world know that he still existed would only take it away.

He had to hide. Anywhere away from here. The old Fenrir would have laughed. Him, the Fenris Wolf, running away and hiding like prey, instead of lashing back out like a warrior? Instead of fufilling his destiny like they had feared, out of spite? But that was not him anymore. He was long gone, worn and faded away by time and lack of hope. What was left was nothing but a joke that the universe had laughed at and took pity on.

Asgard wasn’t safe. They would find him. And would put him back. And make sure he would never feel the breeze on his fur or anything else ever again. He would hide in another realm. Heimdall could see all, but maybe he could find a place where even his eyes escaped him.

He called upon the magic that was his birthright. Before he had been chained, it had been fearsome much like himself. But now, just like himself, it was weak. The chains had pulled at it along with his body leaving him nothing but scraps. The wolf hid back a growl as his magic pulled at his body, his very being until it released itself and engulfed him in white light.

His last thought was of safety and prayers that he would find it.

\---

It was so small, Tony thought to himself as he stared at the small dog that he had rescued. He was walking back to his mansion when he heard howling coming by a nearby stream. He ran over and found the dog (more like a puppy, the more he thought about it) barely keeping its head about the water. Seeing no other way to save it, he jumped into the stream and pulled the dog out. The little puppy struggled to free itself, but slowly gave way to shivering as Tony pulled it into his arms.

It looked like a small wolf-pup, and if he didn’t know that wolves didn’t live around there, he would have though it as one. It had silver fur with brown flecks along with thin red lines crisscrossing over most of its body. The lines led up to its face where… oh. On the dog’s face was a still oozing bloody wound on its muzzle, a bloody jagged line over its nose.

"What the heck happened to you?" He blurted out. It was like a clean hole through the face! He moved a hand towards it,  _you could stick a finger through there...man that's huge. Looks like someone stuck a knife through it or something._ _  
_

The dog was motionless in his arms until he barely brushed its nose. The dog suddenly started struggling, mouth open, bloody teeth showing. Tony quickly released the wolf-dog from his arms before it tried to bite him. 

It dropped to the ground, and started to run away. It made it a few feet away, before collapsing on its side.

\---

Tony stood stunned before quickly rushing over. _Maybe trying to touch something that probably hurt wasn’t such a good idea,_ he thought to himself as he ran.

As he covered the distance, Tony watched as the dog struggle to move away from him. It fought to make its way on its feet but collapsed again. Realizing that it wouldn't be able to stand, it started using its head, slowly pushing itself away from him. A soft growl could be heard, but he ignored it.

“I’m not going to hurt you, dog.” He said as he crouched down beside it. “My name’s Tony and it’s kind of rude to run away from the person who saved your life, you know. Uh… let’s see, my mom makes me take a handkerchief to school everyday. Let’s get that nose cleaned. I didn't really like this one anyway.”

He moved the cloth towards the wound, stopping when the dog started to whimper. Tony looked into the dog’s icy blue-grey eyes and saw nothing but fear. He eased his voice as best as an eleven year old could. “I’m not going to hurt you. I’m trying to help you, ok? See?" He waved the handkerchief like a surrender flag. "You can bite me or something to prove it….maybe not. That would hurt. Don’t do it. But seriously, I’m trying to help.”

The fear in its eyes slowly turned to resignation as the dog stilled. Tony moved the cloth again and slowly wiped the blood from its nose, trying to keep his voice soothing like his mother would after a nightmare. “It’s ok, it’s ok.”

After a few more seconds of wiping blood, it became clear that the dog needed a doctor. The wound went right through the muzzle and it didn’t help that the dog couldn’t move at all.

_I’m going to be in soooo much trouble…_

He picked up the dog, carefully telegraphing his movements to avoid startling the dog even more. “I’m going to take you to someone who can help you ok? You better be grateful though, my mom’s going to kill me for being late…”

Icy blue-grey eyes watched him, and the dog slowly relaxed in his arms.

Tony beamed and smiled at the dog in his arms. It gazed back hesitantly. “Don’t worry, dog. You’re going to be alright.”

\---

The vet had found that the dog had more problems than Tony thought. The red lines around the dog’s body were healing wounds caused by being bounded by something over a long period of time. It was malnourished and was weak from the struggle in the stream. The wound on its muzzle though was the one that was cause for concern.

“He won’t be able to smell things very well anymore. I’m not sure if we can completely repair the damage done without causing even more harm.” The vet had told Tony gently.

After several hours of bandaging, check-ups, shots, more bandages (the dog didn’t handle the shots well), and a small operation to repair parts of its muzzle, Tony was allowed to bring the dog home. By the time he went home, he was carrying a couple cans of dog food, medicine, and a woozy, mummified dog. He was not sorry at all that he helped the vet with the bandages. Not at all. 

Tony slowly opened the door to the mansion. His mom was soooo going to kill him! Expecting the worst, he shoved the cans in his pockets and the dog in his shirt.

_Maybe she won’t notice the huge bulge? Or maybe she’ll think I’m pregnant. Uh… I’ll just run to my room. Hi, Bye, Run. Ok._ He took a moment to psyche himself up and walked in.

Instead of finding an angry mother, he walked into an empty foyer. There was a note on a counter from his mother saying that she would be out for a week to help her sick grandmother. A door opened to the side and his father walked through, without ever so much a glance at him. 

_Oh…ok... well... that works..._

He trudged to his room and dropped off the cans and the dog. Then knowing that it was going to get dark soon, went to the closet to grab blankets and pillows. Jarvis was giving him a funny look as he passed him with comforters and pillows, but he just smiled widely and asked when dinner was going to be ready.  As Tony opened the door, he found the dog trying to rip off all the bandages off as fast as possible. He stopped as Tony came in, giving him a frosty look. He put the blankets down and shrugged.

“Hey, I’m sorry, ok? The vet said you needed some for your ribs so they would heal correctly. I guess I did go a little overboard…” He said as he saw the amount of gauze on the floor.

Huffing in apparent agreement, the dog sat quietly and pulled off another bandage off his leg. Tony sat beside him and tried to pat his head. A growl emitted from the wolf-dog as his hand got closer. Returning his hand to his side, Tony sighed.

“You don’t have to be scared, you know. I know where ever you came from, you weren’t treated very nicely.  But now, you’re pretty safe. I’m not going to do anything bad. We’re kinda alike you know… we’re both alone.”

The dog stopped pulling bandages and gave him a questioning look. “Dad’s too busy to do anything with me. I mean I have my mom… and she tries… but I wish sometimes that my dad would spend some time with me, you know? Or at the very least, remember that I exist. My classmates don’t like me much either. They think I’m too smart. So what if I made an engine when I was six?” His voice grew bitter as he thought back to when he showed it to dad. “It wasn’t good enough for him anyway…” 

He had his robots, and it helped…sometimes. And it wasn’t like he didn’t try to make friends before. It… just didn’t work out as he wanted to. Giving up and just being alone was a lot better than having ‘friends’ who would just use him. But, sometimes he was lonely. Sometimes, he just wanted a real friend.

Gazing at the dog, he asked hopefully, “We could be friends if you wanted?” Tony held out his hand. “You could be my first friend and I could be yours…?”

The wolf-dog hesitated. Gazing back at Tony, then back to his hand, the dog took one step towards it before stopping. It was a long pause, and Tony was about to lower his hand in misery when hesitantly, taking one more look into Tony’s eyes, bit it gently and slowly increasing pressure. Tony almost recoiled and took his hand back, until he looked into the dog’s icy blue-grey eyes. _Trust me?_   The dog seemed to ask. Or maybe it was _Can I trust you?_  

His answer was to put his hand on the dog’s head. “We’re buddies now, and we’ll stick together ok?” The dog let go, giving a bark though taking several steps away from him. “So… now that that’s over with… you need a name. Something awesome! Kinda like me!”

Tony stood up and paced around the room. He glanced back towards the dog, who was observing him, head cocked to the side. “Oh, did I introduce myself earlier? I don’t remember. My name’s Anthony, but I didn’t like it so I shortened it to Tony. And don’t worry about your name ok? It’s not going to be stupid or anything. And if you don’t like it, just growl or something ok?”

Nothing changed and the dog was sitting there silently, so he kept going. “So… let’s see… something awesome. How about Taco?"

A growl and a shake of his head. "Ok, ok. I was just hungry. I didn't eat dinner yet. Telsa? He was an awesome guy who made a DEATH RAY! Well... was in the stages of designing it. Some jerks didn't know awesome if it slapped them in the face."

Another growl, though he did look amused. "Really? It's a DEATH RAY!" Tony frowned. "What else...I like cool things like robots and stuff and stuff and stuff. Hm… oh. How about Dynamo? It was an early generator looong time ago. It was like the beginning of generators everywhere. But c'mon. Telsa. DEATH RAY! Actually that might be a pretty cool-”

The dog gave a bark, tail wagging. "So, can I call you DEATH RAY?" Now the dog was looking at him like he was stupid. Great, he was hurt. "Ok, ok. Fine. Dynamo it is."

The newly dubbed Dynamo came towards him and poked him in the side with his injured nose. The dog still looked a little fearful, but they were buddies and buddies stuck together. He would make sure that his new buddy would never have to fear him.

Tony grinned widely. “Ok, so that’s that! You’re Dynamo, my buddy. And buddies stick together, ok? Now let's go make your bed. Don't steal mine- HEY!" 

\---

_He had somehow found himself on Midgard. In a stream on Midgard, in a very weak, very small form with no magic or power, to be exact. But… a young boy saved him. And though he tried to flee and threaten the boy, he wasn’t hated or feared. Instead… he was helped. Tony… didn’t even try to hurt him. He tried to make friends with the lonely wolf-god and gave him a new name. Fen…no… Dynamo could hide here. Heimdall wouldn’t be looking for a puppy following around a boy. And, maybe he wouldn’t have to go back._


	2. Chapter 2

“Ok. So here’s a socket wrench. I’ll call it socket for time’s sake.” Tony held it up in his left hand to the observing puppy. “This, on the other hand is a regular wrench.” The other hand went up with the tool. “So… socket, wrench, socket, wrench. You got it?”

The dog moved his head between the two tools before barking in reply. Tony nodded. “So when I say socket, which one do I mean? Left hand or right?” Dynamo stared at both, pondering the question as if it held the secrets to the universe before picking the left hand with a tilt of his head.

“Good boy. Now I gotta show you how to tell socket measurements.” The dog crumpled to the floor, whimpering in a form of surrender. Tony couldn’t help it; he busted out laughing and gave Dynamo a belly rub. “Aw… don’t be like that. We’ve only been doing this for…. Oh. Five hours.” Another whimper and a stomach growl.

“Fine, fine. Let’s go get some lunch.” The wolf-dog rolled on his feet and jumped around happily, tail waving like a flag. As Tony went for the door, the dog trailed him a couple steps behind.

\---

He hid Dynamo for four days. Just enough time to have him toilet trained with extra time to spare. They he just flat out asked his dad.

_Easiest._

“Hey dad, I have a dog now. Can I keep it?” Tony stood waiting by the entrance of Howard’s workshop. His father was working on something, probably something to find Captain America again.

_Conversation._

The man stopped working for a few moments to jot down notes on a clipboard. “Hm? Yes, yes.” A glance to where Tony was watching. “Don’t bother me right now. I’m busy.”

_Ever._

“Thanks dad!” He quickly, but quietly left to head to his room to go tell Dynamo. His dad technically did say yes. When his mom came back, she couldn’t argue with that.

Which made the actual conversation with his mother two days later even easier. Kind of.

“Anthony, you have to put it back.” He mother ordered when she first saw his new friend. Maybe if she saw how he looked before, she would have thought differently.

It had only been a week, but under the constant care from the eleven year old, the dog looked healthier and stronger than before. The lines on his body were fading from red to a light grey and his muzzle was healing well. His appetite was getting better, eating tons of food, in Tony’s opinion. Dynamo was still tiny, but he would probably grow in time.

Tony stepped in front of his dog and gave her the cutest face he could muster (which was really cute, if he could say so himself). It wasn’t as effective as he had hoped.

“Please can I keep him? I promise to take care of him and everything! I did it for a week with no problems! He was all alone and needed someone. Someone or something hurt him bad! Dad even said yes already!” Tony pleaded, picking up and holding the dog in his arms as if he could keep his mother from taking him by force.  _Oh great. Mom's crossing her arms now._  "C'mon Dynamo!" He whispered to the dog. "Do something!"

For Dynamo’s part, he apparently did do something because his mother’s face changed from ‘no, we are not having a dog, no exception, go clean your room’ to something like ‘awww, look at the cute puppy’. His mom wavered and said, “If your father said yes, then I guess you can keep him. As long as he doesn’t bother your father, ok? Remember that it is a big responsibility though. But, if you’ve been doing this well for a week by yourself, then you must be growing faster than I thought.” She gave a small smile to him. “You’re doing a good job, Tony.”

Tony’s grin could have turned night into day. “Thanks mom.” And he headed for his room, a tired dog in tow.

\---

Dynamo ate a lot of food. No question about that. He was like a portable trash disposal. Tony had some misgivings with giving him table scraps at first after reading that it would make a dog fat, but the dog just kept eating away, with very little changes in weight.

“Hey Dynamo.” Tony had called out him after said dog had finished his third dish of dog food.

The dog turned to look at him with a small look of annoyance on his face. _Guess he’s still hungry._ “You know a couple weeks ago when mom was going to kick you out? What the heck did you do to convince her for you to stay?”

In response, Dynamo tilted his head and gave an adorable puppy dog look. Tony stared for a few seconds before responding.

“Wait. That worked and not my cute face? Not fair!” Tony whined and crossed his arms. “That’s it. After this, you and me are going to have an adorable contest in front of the mirror!” He got a stifled bark as a response as if he was being laughed at.

Tony wondered sometimes how much the dog could understand him. He knew Dynamo was pretty smart, all things considered. It only really took him three days to teach him how to use the toilet and he was getting a good grasp on all his tools (even though he had some difficulties with measurements). He followed orders well, aside from not stealing his bed, and responded to Tony surprisingly well for something that couldn’t talk.

Even if he didn’t have the intelligence (which Tony knew his dog had in excess), he did have one thing going for him. If Tony had to sum up his dog in one word, it would have to be loyal. His dog was his shadow. Where Tony went, Dynamo would follow. Even when Tony would sit in his workshop for hours at a time, he would sit silently and wait until Tony had finished for the day. He had even found out that the dog would shadow him to school and wait until it was out. On one hilarious occasion, Dynamo came out of a locker and tackled a bully who was about to punch him (One day he was going to figure out how he did that).

The only thing that could have been a problem was Dynamo’s aversion to showing affection and getting affection. He could be picked up as it was a necessity sometimes, but pettings and rubs were hard to give. What was even harder was getting barks, headbutts, lickings, etc., anything dogs would do to show affection. Tony was slowing starting to see progress; he could pet the dog and sometimes feel the dog leaning into his touch. But other times, mostly when he woke up from soft whining on the other side of his bed (he had given up trying to get him from stealing his bed), the dog would hide away or even growl at him when he tried to comfort him.

Whatever left the lines on the dog’s body and the scar on his face had left so much more than the physical reminders.

_Jerks didn’t know what they lost. Their loss, my gain._ Tony thought as he ran towards the nearest mirror.

 “Ok. So here’s the rules. Cute faces. Most adorable face wins. You win, and we’ll go out and play. I win, and we’ll go back and figure out socket measurements, ok?” He concentrated when he heard a woof as a response.

“Ready, get set, GO!” Tony put on his cutest face and almost sparkled in front of the mirror. _Oh yeah. Even dad himself couldn’t resist this… maybe…_ Shaking himself out of that thought, he looked at his friend.

And found himself being out cuted by a long shot. Dynamo looked like someone had slaughtered bunnies for fun and told him that Bambi’s mother die. Was...was that a tear? “Ok, ok, you win you evil mutt! We’ll go out and play! Don’t think you’re going to win all the time!”

\---

If asked, Tony’s favorite thing to do with his dog would probably be working with his robots and watching him play with the results. Dynamo on the other hand, Tony thought were moments like these.

As the dog’s reward, he took the dog out to the stream where they had first met and played fetch. He had made a small flying ball that he could remotely control. Dynamo could spend hours trying to catch that one ball, until either he got too tired to chase it around or Tony, in a moment of sympathy let him get it.

Today, after a couple of minutes playing with the ball, Dynamo laid on the grass, relaxing happily. He looked completely content with the world and Tony found himself lying down with him watching the clouds go by.

“Hey Dynamo?” Tony glanced over at the dog beside him. “You happy?”

A relaxed bark and a gleam in his eyes were given back. He gave a small grin.

“Me too. Promise that we’ll stick together?”

The dog stood up and tackled Tony, slobbering all over his face. After a moment of shock ( _he’d never done that before)_  Tony laughed and pushed the dog off. It gave him a look like, _How could you even think of us not doing so?_

“Even when we go over those measurements?” He laughed again when Dynamo fell to the ground whimpering.

\---

_He was content. He was safe. And even after several weeks, there were no indications that anyone knew that he had escaped. He was starting to fall in his role more, from a broken old wolf, to a playful puppy. But, he couldn't find fault with it. Tony was happy, and so was he._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chugging along. Mostly fluff here (Wanted to add plot, but it wouldn't fit!). Next chapter, it'll kick into high gear and probably start the plot (if there really is one). Thanks for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fast forwarding. Pile on ALL the angst! (As long as it's not overdone, I really hope it isn't)

Ten years later

Tony Stark watched as the coffins were lowered into the graves, priest going over the final rites. Car crash, they had said. Nobody made it out, they said. Sorry for your loss, those bastards said.

Twenty one years of age, just four years out of college, and here he was standing in his oh too large suit, standing over his parents graves. They always say that you’ll feel something (who were they, he didn’t know, but he would have loved to punch them if he had the chance), but right now, he just felt numb.

There was no attachment whatsoever to his father. Flesh and blood aside, there was nothing else that Howard did for him that Jarvis, Obie, or Dynamo couldn’t or didn’t do. Not even when he graduated from MIT at seventeen was he even given a look other than indifference. No, he didn’t feel anything for his father as he stood over him.

His mother… a twinge of guilt ran in his otherwise cold, numb mind. He wished he had spent more time with her. God, she tried. She really did. But he… god. He needed something more. And, had found it. By doing so, he had slowly shut her out. Just like his father and done to him. If his mind could resister anything aside from the cold, he might have laughed. Laughed and laughed and laughed until someone took him away to end his damning misery. Maybe he would, just to feel something, anything other than the numbness.

He heard a low keening sound near the ground next to him. His loyal shadow, still faithful after all these years, lying on the ground, watching as the piles of dirt were thrown in the graves. Pile by pile by pile. The dog was feeling enough for the both of them. For now, that would have to be good enough.

Rites done, friends and mourners slowly dispersing, graves filled, they stood before the graves, a small but important piece of childhood buried among the dead today. Now, at the age of twenty one he would live up to his family name and start running the family business.

“C’mon, Dynamo. Time to go.” He snapped his fingers and turned to leave. They had more things to do, and standing in a graveyard wouldn’t accomplish anything. At least, that’s what he told himself as he trudged his way to the car. He could always come back later… maybe.

\---

Working in his lab seemed like the best option to go. Tinkering with robots, science, whatever he could get his hands on. Anything for his peace of mind.

“Dynamo. Screwdriver-chisel, socket, solder.” Dummy could have probably done it with the new modifications that he set to it a few days ago, but he needed stability. Something constant to ground him, to keep him from drifting and smashing the walls he was bringing up.

Footsteps and a bark. Just like routine. He could do this. Reaching out for the screwdriver first… he grabbed nothing but air.

He swiveled and saw the dog steadily gazing at him with his icy blue-grey eyes that held nothing but compassion and faith in them. In his mouth he held a blanket. _Don’t you think it’s time to go to bed?_ Dynamo seemed to ask.

This wasn’t routine. This. Wasn’t Routine. Ice melted and raged until there was nothing but conflagration. “I need the freaking screwdriver, damnit!”

If asked later, if Tony ever admitted it (he never would, not even behind closed doors), he couldn’t remember what he roared about. Everything hit its peak. The weight of his world crashing on his shoulders with every new revelation. Years of childhood pain, guilt, disappointment combined with losing his stability and too much responsibility flooded and boiled over until there was nothing left but madness.

He could remember storming around, yelling as his dog stood watching him with calm, understanding eyes. He could remember how much he hated them at that very moment, how a dog didn’t pity him, but understood on the same level as him. He remembered raging at his dog, raging for things out of both of their control. Everything was red and everything was rage.

He came back to himself holding Dynamo in his arms. He might have been one of the few things he had done right in his few years of life. “Please.” He whispered into the dog’s ears, voice cracking, and tears threatening to spill. “You’re one of the few things I have left. Please don’t leave me.”

 

\---

“He has to come. I don’t care about the damn rules. He’s been with me since I was a kid.” Tony glared at his father’s friend, Obadiah Stane. The young man was replacing Obie as CEO, taking his place in Stark Industries. His dog was coming with him.

Obadiah Stane shook his head sadly. “It’s not about the rules Tony, it’s about the safety of your pet. We’ve had a lot of traveling to do, and it’s difficult enough with the people that have with us now. Also, you will be very busy for the first several days, without any time to deal with any other personal matters. That wouldn’t be good for him and would cause unnecessary stress on you. We’ll be back in a couple of weeks and you can see your dog then ok?”

“I can manage. I haven’t been without him for years already.”

“You can, but it’s a whole different environment out there. The pet laws are strict, and you need both a collar and leash on dogs. I know your dog doesn’t care for either, but without them, he could be mistaken as a stray, or even worse a wild animal and shot. There’s no place for him to roam and there’s too many people. Something bad will probably happen and then where would we be?”

He didn’t like it. But… he had to take over, and he didn’t want to cause Dynamo any more suffering. Last night was bad enough… The crowds of people, the wolf-dog’s continuing trust issues with anyone but him, and the dangers of him being mistaken as a wolf roaming around the city… He crouched down and held his dog. “I’ll be back. Promise. Wait for me, ok? I need to fix some things and then we’ll stick together like buddies should.”

He only saw worried and sad eyes with a soft whimper. But he didn’t make a move when Tony stood up and followed Stane to the prepared car. He was still sitting there when the car took off.

“Beautiful dog, isn’t he? He would sell for a fine penny, you know. Even more if he sired children.” Stane said to Tony as he tried to relax in his seat.

The tiny wolf-pup that he found had grown into a fine dog. Most of the physical reminders of what had been done to him had faded. Even the wound on his face had left only a light scar when it had healed fully. If he didn’t know any better, he would have thought Dynamo was a full wolf. Strong and fast, but by far one of the most loyal friends he ever had.

“They could keep their money. I have boatloads of it already. Hell, I could make a to scale origami boat out of the money I have.”

The older man shrugged. “It’s a shame for them, but I understand.”

\---

_He would be back. Tony had promised. Then everything would be right again. Or at least getting there._

_Hey! Look! A car! Maybe that was them! He had run over happily, tail wagging, eager to greet his friend again. It wasn’t two weeks, but maybe it went by faster?_

_Two unfamiliar men came out of the car. He hid back a growl; strangers would always make him go on his guard. Maybe Tony was in the car with them?_

_One of the men pulled out a rope. The other, a sack and a club. His hackles rose, and he snarled at them. What the hell was going on? He was Tony’s friend and wasn’t leaving him._

_“We can do this the easy way or the hard way, dog. Someone paid us a decent amount to have a specimen like you.” The first man raised the rope._

_Hell. No._

_In a past life, a life he could barely remember at times, he swore that he would never been bounded again. He leapt, dodging the man’s attempts to bind him and chomped down on his arm. He held back a howl when he heard the bones crush and the man scream._

_The second man dropped the sack and raised his club. He carefully stayed out of the reach and clipped the man in his leg. His blood boiled over and he launched himself and pinned the man to the ground. He clawed at the chest, watching bright red blood spill from the wounds._

_He readied to rip out the man’s throat when he suddenly stumbled off the man, balance hindered. He turned around and saw a bright red thing in his flank, the first man using his off-arm to hold a …. something….everything was getting woozy. He had gotten careless._

_He tried to fight against the drugs coursing through his systems, but could only watch helplessly as he was shoved into a sack and thrown back in the car. Everything was fading, he couldn’t move…_

_Tony…_

_\---_

Two long aching weeks. But Tony Stark, now CEO of Stark Industries was back home. And he couldn’t wait to see his dog. The car ride couldn’t have been slower. As soon as he saw the familiar mansion and he felt the car stop moving, he leapt out of the vehicle. It had been too long.

He made his way to the door and stood around waiting. Dynamo should have been here by now. The dog would always be at the entrance waiting for him. _Is he ok? Did he get sick?_ He thought as he rushed through the doors.

_Maybe he was sick or something. Or sleeping._ He searched through the rooms with a manic desperation. He could not lose his dog. The rest of the damning world could have burned to the ground and he would not care if he had his dog.

“Dynamo! Dynamo! Where the hell are you?” He shouted in his workshop.

“C’mon buddy, you ok?” His bedroom was empty.

“I’m back!” He couldn’t find even a trace of him in the kitchen. Hell, his food bowl was full for the first time.

Searching the rest of the house proved futile. The dog just wasn’t there. “Dynamo?” His voice echoed through the halls. He didn’t get a response back.

“Tony?” Stane came up from behind him. “What’s going on? Where’s your dog?”

“I… I don’t know. I can’t find him.” He either was lost, taken, or ran away. But in the years he had known his dog, the last option was out of the question.

“Let’s go check the security cameras. They might have caught something.” That was a thought. _Please let him be safe. Please…_

The videos were pulled from the two weeks and there was one note of significance. His heart plummeted and his brain went empty.

His dog left the premise and there was no sign of his return.

Dynamo was gone.

“We’ll try to find him Tony. Maybe he went for a walk and got lost or something. He’s a smart dog.”

“Yeah.” He put on a determined expression on his face. “Or someone took him or something. He wouldn’t have run away.” He shoved the thoughts saying otherwise to the corner of his mind.

\---

They had searched for several weeks.

Tony stomped to his room and crashed on his bed. It had felt so empty, lacking a bed stealing dog.

_I should have made him come with us… I would have made sure that he was ok! Damnit…_

He had to go back to deal with Stark Industries again for a month this time. Obie had decided to call off the search. If both of them, with Tony’s considerable resources could not find one dog in the time that they had… what would an extra month or two do?

_It’s not like it’s the end of the world Tony. You can deal with this like everything else in your life. You’re used to it._

He could deal with this. He could grow from it. It didn’t matter why Dynamo was gone, just how he handled it afterwards. Living through his work was always a good option. And it would be good for his company.

_Yeah. You’re used to it. Just get back to work on your robots and you’ll be fine._

It was a long night. He hadn't felt this lonely since he was a child wanting his father's approval. He was alone.

\---

_He was lost._

_The men weren’t happy. He licked his wounds. They were going to be sore for a while._

_They were moving him somewhere. He heard something about Canada, something about a buyer and complaining how they were going to split the proceeds three ways. He didn’t see a third person, maybe they were somewhere else?_

_Then he heard the squeal of brakes and howled at the high pitched sound of metal on metal. Everything went black._

_He awoke in darkness, with the car slowing filling with water. He could faintly hear roaring water and more creaking of metal. They must have crashed and ended up in a river._

_...He couldn’t open the doors! He had found the two bodies in the front. Or…what was left of them._

_His teeth and paws were useless and they were still sinking…_

_\---_

_He had pulled himself out and swam to the surface._

_There were lights shining on him as he made his way onto the shore. He was so tired…_

_“Sir, are you ok?” A woman asked him, helping him out of the water. “Sir? You need to stay awake, Mr…?_

_Dynamo was his name… but he was so damn tired and cold. Teeth were chattering and he couldn’t form the words…._

_“Sir, eyes on me. You have to stay awake!”_

_He would have apologized, but he gave in to the darkness, wondering how the hell he was going to get used to walking with two feet._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey uh... just writing this note to say thanks for reading. I know I'm still not that good at writing, so if you're still reading this, thanks. Oh and uh... if you've replied, thanks (I'm just kinda shy and don't really know how to respond).


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